My goodness, this is tragic news.

According to BoingBoing, Guru (one half of the legendary Gang Starr) collapsed after an apparent heart attack.  He’s now in a coma in New York.

While it’s always an awful thing to hear, I find it especially tough because Guru (on the right in the picture at the top of this post) was a huge influence on my love for hip hop growing up.  I can’t even count the number of times I listened to the Moment of Truth album on my discman.  The news is saying that Guru’s to undergo surgery today, so keep your fingers crossed.

[UPDATE:]

Thank god.  MTV is reporting that Guru underwent surgery and is recovering.  They say:

An unnamed source told AllHipHop.com that the rapper was doing “fine” and is expected to make a full recovery. “Guru is alive and recovering from his surgery. Doctors are expecting a full recovery luckily.”

Here’s hoping.